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Rows of vines rolling down from the hill at Hautvillers in Champagne, with the Marne valley and a cloudy sky beyond

Sample journey · 7–9 days

From Champagne chalk to the slopes of Burgundy

Reims, Épernay, Troyes, Chablis, Vézelay, Beaune & Dijon

Photo: Paul Schellekens / Unsplash

Illustrative journey ideas — not bookable packages. No prices, dates or accommodation are implied.

Champagne and Burgundy are often mentioned in the same breath, yet they could hardly be more different. In Champagne the wine is made underground, in Roman-era chalk pits and miles of cellars beneath Reims and Épernay, while above them stands the cathedral where French kings were crowned for centuries. In Burgundy it's the other way round: wine here is a story of land and its boundaries. Over centuries, Cistercian monks noted which stretch of slope gave a different wine, and today these climats, tiny named plots, are on UNESCO's World Heritage List.

Between the two worlds lie the half-timbered streets of Troyes, the limestone slopes of Chablis above the river Serein, Vézelay with one of the finest Romanesque basilicas in Europe, and the stillness of Fontenay Abbey. The journey suits couples and those who love slow food: drives are short, usually around an hour, cellars and tastings are chosen around your taste, and the stays, from a château among the vines to a village house with a garden, are as much a part of the journey as the places themselves.

The route

The journey

  1. Paris
  2. Reims
  3. Épernay & Hautvillers
  4. Troyes
  5. Chablis
  6. Vézelay
  7. Fontenay Abbey
  8. Beaune & the Côte d'Or
  9. Dijon
  1. The medieval church of Saint-Martin on the skyline above rows of vines at Chavot, near Épernay

    01Days 1–3 · Reims & Épernay

    A cathedral above the chalk

    From Paris, the high-speed train takes about three-quarters of an hour to Reims. The first afternoon belongs to the cathedral, where the famous smiling angel looks down from the facade and Marc Chagall's windows glow inside; nearby are the Palais du Tau and the Basilica of Saint-Remi. The next morning, down into the chalk cellars: some began as Roman quarries, later turned by winemakers into underground galleries holding thousands of bottles. In the afternoon, the road through the forests and vineyards of the Montagne de Reims to Hautvillers, where the monk Dom Pérignon lived in the abbey, and on to Épernay and its Avenue de Champagne. Two nights around Épernay, perhaps in a château among the vines or a quiet village house; instead of the great houses, you might choose small family growers who lead you through the cellar themselves.

  2. Rows of vines in early spring in the grand cru vineyard of Les Clos at Chablis

    02Days 3–5 · Troyes & Chablis

    Half-timbering, limestone and the Serein

    About an hour and a half south lies Troyes, the old capital of the Champagne fairs. The old town, whose plan resembles a champagne cork, is still full of leaning half-timbered houses, narrow lanes and Gothic churches with stained glass. After lunch, about another hour to Chablis and two nights in the small town on the river Serein. Here the vines grow on limestone packed with fossilised seashells and give a straight, mineral white wine. A walk up the grand cru slope above the town, a tasting with a local grower and a long dinner: that's the whole day. If you like, a short outing to Noyers, one of Burgundy's loveliest villages, with medieval walls inside a loop of the river.

  3. The stone facade of the Basilica of Sainte-Marie-Madeleine at Vézelay

    03Days 5–6 · Vézelay & Fontenay

    Light in a Romanesque nave

    About an hour to Vézelay, a hilltop village on the edge of the Morvan, from where medieval pilgrims set out for Santiago de Compostela. The Basilica of Sainte-Marie-Madeleine is one of the finest Romanesque churches in Europe: the carved tympanum above the doors, pale and dark stone in the arches, and a nave crossed on certain days of the year by a path of sunlight. There's one night here so you can see the village quiet in the evening, after the day visitors have gone, and, if you wish, listen to the evening office sung in the basilica. The next morning it's about an hour and a quarter to Fontenay, a Cistercian abbey in a wooded valley, little changed since the twelfth century: the cloister, the chapter house and the forge beside the stream. Then about the same again to Beaune.

  4. The pattern of coloured glazed tiles and a small dormer on the roof of the Hospices de Beaune

    04Days 6–8 · Beaune & the Côte d'Or

    Slopes with names

    Two nights in Beaune or one of the wine villages below the slope. First, the Hospices de Beaune, founded in 1443 for the poor: the roof of coloured glazed tiles, the great ward and Rogier van der Weyden's Last Judgement altarpiece. The next day, the Route des Grands Crus: north along the Côte de Nuits through Vosne and Gevrey to the château at Clos de Vougeot, built by the Cistercians, and south to the Côte de Beaune villages of Pommard, Meursault and Puligny-Montrachet. You might go with a driver-guide or, in the warmer months, by bike along the vineyard lanes. Tastings here are small and personal, often in a cellar with the grower, who explains why two neighbouring plots give different wines. In the evening, Burgundian cooking without hurry.

  5. The semicircular Place de la Libération in Dijon, framed by classical buildings and arcades, seen from above

    05Days 8–9 · Dijon

    The city of the dukes

    About 45 minutes north lies Dijon, the capital of the Dukes of Burgundy, and a final night in the city. The old town is easy to walk: the Palace of the Dukes with its Museum of Fine Arts, where the ducal tombs are ringed by small mourning figures, the semicircular Place de la Libération and the church of Notre-Dame, where passers-by touch a small stone owl in the wall for luck. The morning is best spent at the covered market, and later at the Cité internationale de la gastronomie et du vin. On the last day the high-speed train takes about an hour and a half back to Paris; alternatively, the journey can continue south to Lyon.

Experience highlights

  1. 01

    The chalk cellars

    Roman-era quarries beneath Reims, where champagne now ages.

  2. 02

    An evening in Vézelay

    A Romanesque basilica on its hill, and a quiet village once the day visitors leave.

  3. 03

    Fontenay Abbey

    Cistercian simplicity in a wooded valley: cloister, chapter house and the old forge.

  4. 04

    In the cellar with a grower

    A small tasting in a Côte d'Or village, where you learn why every plot has its own name.

First, we listen. Then, we explore what's possible.

Make it your own

  • At a slower pace

    With two or three more nights in Chablis and on the Côte d'Or, the journey becomes an 11–12 day holiday with at least two nights everywhere.

  • By canal

    A few days can be spent on a hired canal boat on the Canal du Nivernais or the Canal de Bourgogne, slowly through locks and villages, with bike paths along the towpath.

  • By season

    In September and October the harvest is under way and the colours are richest, though some growers don't receive visitors then; May, June and late October are often the calmest and most pleasant.

  • With Lyon or Paris

    From Dijon it's natural to continue to Lyon, with its bouchons and market, or to begin with a few days in Paris.

Practical considerations

  • The best time is roughly May to October. The harvest usually falls in late August and September but varies each year; some cellars don't receive visitors then, so we plan tastings in advance.
  • The journey is planned with a car from Reims to Dijon, as the wine villages are scattered; on tasting days we suggest a driver or guide.
  • Many small growers receive visitors by appointment only and speak French, so we can arrange translation when setting up visits.
  • On Mondays and Sundays some museums, cellars and village restaurants close; we check opening hours before you travel.

General guidance only. Seasons, weather and wildlife are never guaranteed, and travel requirements are always worth checking before you go.

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